SELMA and MARTIN LUTHER KING Jr DAY

Today, “Martin Luther King Jr.” day was long time in becoming an actuality to recognize a true national, indeed a world hero. Like Gandhi he preached that the world’s social wrongs can be righted by nonviolence; a lesson forgotten not only in the Islamic world but in the continued violence and willful destruction accompanying the protests against recent court decisions.

In the words of MLK Jr.; “The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood.”

Each of us should understand that any form of dishonoring another human regardless of race or religion is unacceptable.

There has been accusations of racial discrimination in the recent nominations for the Oscars which seemed to have ignored the movie “Selma”.

There is no question that "Selma" was the landmark in the civil rights movement fight. Nor is there any negative critical remarks about the acting and composition of the picture.

However, perhaps some of the so called snubbing may have been motivated by the ill advised attempt of the producers and directors to rewrite history.

President Johnson was not a villain but the moving force in passing and enforcing Civil Rights legislation, a fact that he felt was the crowning point of his life. It was he who initiated the concept of the legislation, not in response to King’s demands. Johnson on his own initiative held that famous meeting.

This was all the more noteworthy because he came from a society in which racial discrimination was the normal. He was an advocate in his early political years before he matured and became a powerful champion for equal rights for all. That there was continued resistance after the laws were passed and even today there is continued efforts to deny segments of the population equality was not Johnson’s doing.

Let us celebrate this day for what it should stand for, not as just another holiday.